1. Field of the Invention:
The present invention relates to an anti-glare rearview mirror assembly for use in the passenger's compartment of a motor vehicle, and more particularly to an anti-glare inside rearview mirror assembly for reflecting, toward the driver, a reduced intensity of light from the headlamps of a motor vehicle running behind the driver's vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art:
Some inside rearview mirror assemblies for motor vehicles incorporate an anti-glare mechanism which allows the mirror itself to be tilted into a position to reduce the reflection of light from headlamps of a running vehicle behind the driver's vehicle.
Typically, such an anti-glare inside rearview mirror assembly comprises a bracket mounted on a stay extending from a motor vehicle body, a housing swingably attached to the bracket, an anti-glare mirror supported in the housing, and a tilting mechanism for tilting the housing with respect to the bracket. In use, the tilting mechanism is operated to tilt the housing with respect to the bracket for angularly moving the mirror from a normal position into an anti-glare position, so that the reflection of light from the headlamps of a motor vehicle running behind the driver's vehicle is reduced in intensity. Therefore, the driver is not dazzled by the light reflected by the anti-glare mirror.
The angle of the anti-glare inside rearview mirror assembly with respect to the bracket in the normal position varies from driver to driver because of different physical conditions of drivers. For this reason, the anti-glare inside rearview mirror is usually equipped with an angle adjusting mechanism which is positioned between the stay and the bracket for varying the mirror angle so as to best match any driver.
One known angle adjusting mechanism is disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 50(1975)-6107, for example. The disclosed angle adjusting mechanism includes a conical tube extending rearwardly behind a mirror housing which holds a mirror, and a swingable member fitted in the tube. A spherical body on the distal end of a stay is inserted in the swingable member. The angle of an anti-glare mirror is adjusted when the mirror housing is gripped and angularly moved to swing the swingable member with respect to the spherical body.
The force with which any adjusted mirror angle is kept in a given position, i.e., the resistance to the swinging movement of the swingable member with respect to the spherical body, is adjustable. More specifically, the disclosed angle adjusting mechanism includes a nut threaded over the distal end of the tube. When the nut is turned, the swingable member moves in the conical tube to vary the force with which the swingable member is held relatively to the spherical body, so that the force with which the adjusted mirror angle is kept in position is adjusted.
To adjust the force with which the adjusted mirror angle is kept in position, therefore, the nut on the rear of the mirror housing has to be turned. However, the nut on the rear of the mirror housing is not readily accessible by the drive and hence cannot easily be manipulated.
Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 58(1983)-51633 discloses an inside rearview mirror assembly which includes a mirror housing having a receiver frame extending rearwardly from the rear surface of the mirror housing, and a screw mounted on a lower surface of the receiver frame. The force with which any adjusted angle mirror is kept in position can be adjusted by turning the screw. Since the screw is directed downwardly and can be easily accessed from below, it can be turned more easily than the nut disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 50(1975)-6107. The receiver frame which extends rearwardly from the rear of the mirror housing, however, makes the inside rearview mirror assembly thick in its transverse direction (i.e., the fore-and-aft direction of the motor vehicle). Accordingly, the disclosed arrangement does not lend itself to incorporation into an anti-glare inside rearview mirror whose mirror housing is inherently thick on account of a mirror tilting mechanism housed therein.